A whiff, a touch, a glimpse, a taste, a buzz.

Little Feels started to take shape when my son turned 3 months old. Something shifted dramatically. From one day to the next, he was suddenly alert as a meerkat. In those early months, where things oscillated wildly between feeling too slow and feeling too fast, I immediately realised this coming alive of the senses was one for the books (literally). I created Little Feels to capture my son’s first instances of utterly enjoying his senses– biting into a juicy steamed apple, feeling the shapes of all the leaves in the park, hearing the pressure cooker whistle… The book was created out of felt– using hand cut shapes to conceal and reveal elements and recreate the wonder he (and I!) were experiencing. Do check out the video to see the full original book.

I’ve since been working to turn this into a board book for toddlers and young kids to enjoy with their parents and caregivers. A fun read-along to snuggle up and play with. I went back to the drawing board and worked on the visual narrative and added text to create something with universal appeal– to lead the reader through each sense with rhythmic words and beautiful, expressive art. I experimented with different media to find an art style that would be a fitting parallel to the tactile experience of the original felt book. I landed on the technique of paper cuts, filling them with vivid brush strokes and textures. It lends the perfect visual texture for a playful book about the senses, when paired with elements that reveal and conceal parts of the narrative.

Now for the book details:

Size: 18cm x 18cm

Page Count: 32

Full colour

Types of book: Board book with rounded edges.